Black Theatre had its roots as early as 1664 on an English slave ship Hannibal where the ship served as a center stage for slaves to simply become entertainers for the crew on board. The slaves who performed for the crew had very little to work with in terms of theatre techniques and direction, but only sang and danced. But from the little they had to work with, they seemed to have had a rich culture and they themes that were about survival. Another genre of black theatre that came about was Minstrelsy, where it had began in the 1840s and focused on the song, dance, and humor of humble black characters but portrayed by white actors. By the time the Harlem Renaissance came about was when the Black community had a significant voice that was heard and rejoiced by people of all colors and created a stamp on American art that is still used as an inspiration to this day. When the 1960s came around was when Black voices needed to be loud and heard. Today as we are closer to racial equality as we can be is when Black Theatre is now being perfected with added dimension that never before has the Black voice was understood and respected.